30.11.2025 09:30
A lawyer who filed 1,600 lawsuits for the refund of BSMVs (Banking and Insurance Transaction Taxes) ranging from 50 kuruş to 4 TL, by exploiting a loophole in the tax regulation and acting on behalf of relatives, faced penalties. The Constitutional Court rejected the lawyer's individual application due to the abuse of the right to individual application, which requested the confidentiality of their identity, and imposed a disciplinary fine of 2,000 TL on all applicants.
The Constitutional Court (AYM) imposed a disciplinary fine of 2,000 lira each on the applicants due to the abuse of the right to individual application in a case where a lawyer opened nearly 1,600 lawsuits by conducting bank transactions for his relatives to earn attorney's fees and filed a violation of rights application.
NOTICED THE GAP IN TAX REGULATIONS AND WANTED TO BENEFIT
According to the decision published in the Official Gazette, following a letter sent by the Revenue Administration (GİB) to the Turkish Banks Association in 2020, banks began to withhold and pay the Banking and Insurance Transactions Tax (BSMV) from those involved for gold sales transactions made through bank accounts without physical delivery.
After the Council of State annulled the BSMV in 2023, GİB sent a letter to the Turkish Banks Association stating that BSMV should not be collected, but some banks continued to withhold BSMV from their customers for a while longer. Noticing this situation regarding BSMV, a lawyer had some relatives conduct low-value gold purchase transactions.
FILED HUNDREDS OF LAWSUITS FOR A 50 KURUŞ DEDUCTION
As a result of these transactions, BSMV was collected from these individuals ranging from 50 kuruş to 4 lira. The lawyer filed approximately 1,600 lawsuits for the refund of the BSMV. The courts accepted around 1,200 cases and rejected 379 cases. Additionally, in some of these cases, it was ruled that attorney's fees would be paid, while in others, it was ruled that they would not be paid.
REJECTION OF APPLICATIONS AND FINE
The lawyer consolidated the 379 lost cases into 29 separate individual application files and filed a violation of rights application with the AYM.
The AYM declared 13 of the 379 files inadmissible due to "exceeding the application period," while it rejected 366 of them on the grounds of "abuse of the right to apply." The Supreme Court also imposed a disciplinary fine of 2,000 lira each on the applicants in accordance with the Law No. 6216 on the Establishment and Procedural Rules of the Constitutional Court and the Internal Regulations.
REASONING OF THE DECISION
In its decision, the AYM stated that it is possible to evaluate behaviors that are clearly contrary to the purpose of the individual application procedure as an abuse of the right to apply, and that the Supreme Court can assess whether there is an abuse by considering the specific characteristics of the case presented to it.
The decision noted that taking advantage of the gaps in the legal system to obtain unjust and exorbitant attorney's fees by filing numerous lawsuits that have no real basis against individuals or the public and do not aim to protect a right, and making these lawsuits the subject of individual application could constitute "abuse."
The decision emphasized that the duty of the courts is to resolve the disputes brought before them and to ensure justice, stating, "Courts should not be allowed to be used as a means of personal enrichment by creating artificial disputes."
In the case subject to the application, it was stated that the lawyer "abused the right to individual application by artificially increasing the number of lawsuits to obtain numerous attorney's fees," and it was noted that he had his close relatives conduct low-value transactions for this purpose.
The decision indicated that by filing hundreds of lawsuits, the lawyer significantly increased the workload of the courts and caused a loss of labor, and it was recorded that this also prolonged the trial periods of other cases seen in these courts.
The decision also noted that the lawyer continued a similar attitude by "making some of these cases the subject of individual application" before the AYM, stating, "When the conditions of the specific case are evaluated as a whole, it has been concluded that the right to sue and the right to individual application have been clearly abused. The Constitutional Court has decided to reject the part of the application concerning 366 cases due to the abuse of the right to apply."